IN another change of policy from
a newly aggressive Honda, lead
satellite-team rider Marco Melandri
and his Fausto Gresini-owned
squad have been given permission
to pursue major new lines of
development, independent of the
factory.
As reported last week, the team's
first move was from the Öhlins
suspension now used by all Hondas
to the in-house Showa suspension,
rejected by the factory team for this
year.
There were other changes under
the skin, with chassis modifications
that adjusted stiffness ratios, as well
as a significantly stiffer swing-arm.
The consequence was sixth place,
Melandri's best result of the season so
far, as well as the acknowledgement
that "we still have a lot of work to do
to make the bike as I like it."
Melandri is on the bounce after a
disastrous 2008 with Ducati, then a
move to a Kawasaki team crippled
by the withdrawal of factory support.
The ex-250 champion claimed all his
five premier-class race wins with the
Gresini team, which has long had a
special relationship with HRC.
Giving official approval to these
changes represents a major shift of
policy for Honda, which generally
keeps development strictly in-house,
and monitors satellite teams closely.
Paddock observers see it as part
of a revitalised effort after years of
relative failure for Honda, with new
HRC vice-president Shuhei Nakamoto
-- late of Honda's cancelled F1 project --
bringing a more ruthless approach.
This has included the hiring of
top electronic staff from the factory
Yamaha team, and of Ducati project
manager Livio Suppo.
Melandri leads Honda experiments
"Stoner can come back" -- Hayden
MULTIPLE crash victim Casey Stoner will be
able to fight back from his current position,
according to his team-mate Nicky Hayden.
The American insists that Casey is not about
to be fazed by the series of crashes that have
blighted his performance at three of the last four
races.
"Casey has a real short memory," said Hayden.
"I've seen him go out after crashing, and he's
straight on the red helmets [denoting fastest
section times] pretty much from his out lap."
Stoner was not so sure:
"I've made the championship pretty hard
for myself ... maybe impossible," he said, after
explaining his Le Mans crash.
With 15 rounds remaining, Stoner already
trails points leader Lorenzo by 59, and Rossi
by 50. A couple of no-scores by either would
change the position, but Stoner will need not
only to be consistent but to defeat both of the
Yamaha riders at almost every race.
Footnote: Stoner's luck remained bad at Le
Mans. He was unable to restart at Qatar because
a handlebar had broken off. Ducati revised the
handlebar/triple-clamp arrangement to prevent
this happening, and at Le Mans the handlebars
remained intact:
"But because it went end over end, everything
else was broken," said Stoner, with a wry grin.
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